Students With A Cause
The Medical Society at the
U of T is full of talented student
leaders that continually enrich
student life and add to the
surrounding community.
This
year, when I began my term as
President, there were two goals
that I wanted to accomplish.
First, I wanted to see the Medical
Society fulfill its potential as a
body of student government, and
to gain exposure within the
university and the Toronto
community. Secondly, I wanted
to help cultivate an environment
in which student leaders received
the support and encouragement
that is necessary for achievement
and mutual learning.
We began the year in a
new, centrally located office that
allowed for greater visibility and
increased contact with the student
body. In addition, we re-created
the Toronto Meds webpage so
that students could readily access
information about student life &
student government.
Early in the year, MedSoc
got to work to stretch our budget
as far as was possible to support
student initiatives. Student clubs
allow students to showcase our
various talents, explore academic
and non-academic areas of
interest, hold events for students
and community members, and
help those that are less fortunate
within our community. This year,
in conjunction with the Student
Affairs office and the MAA,
MedSoc re-invented what used to
By Tasleem Murji, OT7
be the Functions Committee and
helped create the new MedLife
committee. Medlife brings you
everything from career nights, to
cooking nights.
While working hard to
support student initiatives, we
quickly realized that creating a
safe and comfortable place to hold
students events should also be a
priority. With this in mind,
MedSoc, is pleased to announce
that in the New Year, we shall see
a new security system installed in
the Alumni Lounge. We hope
that with this new security in
place, we will be able to invest in
improving the resources in the
lounge for student use. Together,
with your input, we will begin
making some real changes to our
lounge space!
Things have been just as
busy on the academic side. We
have been working to implement
the changes that students and the
accreditation committees have
suggested. Also, in October we
took our MedSoc publications to
the AAMC in Boston and
strengthened our market share
south of the border.
We are
looking forward to bringing you
MedSoc’s latest publication, the
Pharmacology Hand Book, in the
spring of 2005.
We have strengthened our
relationship with external bodies
like the CFMS, AAMC, CMA,
PAIRO, and OMA. In October,
we had our first ever OMAPhysician panel discussion in
1
January 2005
response to student concern about
the OMA-MOHLTC agreement
proposal. The positive feedback
for this event was overwhelming
and served to demonstrate that
our medical students are deeply
concerned about the future of
their profession as it pertains to
them and to patient care.
MedSoc has also been
very involved in the debate on
rising student tuition.
In
November, we were invited to sit
at a round table discussion and a
town hall meeting with the
Honorable Bob Rae. In January,
we have also arranged to have Mr.
Rae meet with Toronto medical
students to discuss issues related
to post secondary education.
We still have many goals
to accomplish this year, and we
hope to continue serving the
student body and representing
your interests in the New Year. I
cannot over-emphasize just how
lucky we are to have so many
talented students at this school. I
have learned so much from
working with each of you these
last few months and I thank you
all for your support, great ideas,
and good advice. It is an absolute
pleasure
working
in
an
environment of students who are
motivated, creative, and driven by
a strong sense of both individual
and group convictions. I believe
our student body is held together
by a combination of diversity and
solidarity that lends us our great
strength.
News/Editorials
The State of Canada's National Drug Plan: A Federal-Provincial Stalemate
By Sarah Munroe
With an annual cost of
nearly $15 billion a year, paying
for prescription drugs is the
fastest growing health care
expense in Canada. i Premiers and
territorial leaders met at the
Health Care Summit this past July
to propose a solution to alleviate
this immense financial burden.
In what seemed to be an
unusual show of unity, the leaders
agreed to a plan in which the
federal government would fund a
national pharmacare program.
Although details were not
provided, the federal government
would be asked to take over the
purchasing of drugs and to fund
standardized coverage for all
Canadians. This would allow the
provinces to redirect funds to
other areas, such as reducing wait
times for diagnostic procedures
and surgeries.
While
the
provincial
leaders were unanimous in their
support of what they saw as a
means to fulfill Prime Minister
Paul Martin's campaign promise
to create a national drug program,
the federal government did not
show the same enthusiasm.
According
to
Health
Minister Ujjal Dosanjh, the
federal government is more
focused on decreasing wait times
than on comprehensive drug
coverage.i Both Martin and
Dosanjh have commented that the
federal government is only
committed
to
creating
a
‘catastrophic
drug
coverage
plan’.ii A ‘catastrophic drug plan’
would only cover drug costs for
people with extremely high
annual drug expenses. The plan
proposed by provincial leaders
has been estimated to cost $12
billion annually, while at least one
proposal
for
‘catastrophic
coverage’ was estimated at a
much lower $1 billion.ii
There are many potential
benefits to having a nationwide
plan controlled, at least in part, by
the federal government.
By
purchasing drugs in bulk, costs
can be reduced by as much as 21
to 51 per cent.iii In Australia this
strategy has saved $2 billion.iv
The
federal
government
purchasing drugs does seem
appropriate since patent laws,
trade agreements, and drug
regulations also affect cost and
are controlled by this level of
government. iv
While prescription drugs
are undoubtedly necessary for
many Canadians, they cannot
stand alone in medical treatment.
Some critics of the proposed plan
urge that to be effective, it must
be integrated with the rest of
healthcare. The Canada Health
Act, which ensures free medical
care for all Canadians, only
covers medications when they are
administered
in
hospitals.iv
Outpatient medications, what a
pharmacare plan would cover,
would need to be added to the Act
to ensure an appropriate balance
between outpatient medication
and inpatient services. iii
2
After discussions at the
September Health Care Summit,
the premiers withdrew the
proposed plan in exchange for
increased provincial health care
funding. It was agreed that a task
force would be set up to develop a
‘national drug strategy’ by 2006.v
Although this seemed to
end discussions, a meeting of
provincial and federal health
ministers in October raised the
issue again. Health Minister
Dosanjh remained firm that a
national plan would not be
created; however, a 14-member
task force was established to
report on the issue in January.vi
In the end, a lack of integration
could leave patients in the middle
of a federal-provincial battle that
may compromise patient care.
i
CBC News Online. "Wait times
priority, not drugs, says health minister."
August 17, 2004.
ii
Anis, Aslam H. "National pharmacare:
a dog's tale." Canadian Medical
Association Journal. 171(6). September
14, 2004.
iii
CBC News Online. "Martin agreed to
pharmacare working group." September
14, 2004.
iv
Government of Canada. "Canada
Health Act Overview" November 25,
2002. www.hcsc.gc.ca/english/media/releases/2002/hea
lth_act/overview.htm
v
CBC News. "Anatomy of an
agreement." September 16, 2004.
vi
Matas, Robert. "Dosanjh rejects drug
plan proposal." The Globe and Mail.
Monday, October 18, 2004.
News/Editorials
Superbugs: How the Biggest Threat to Your Patients Could Be You
By Mark Sinyor, OT7
“Until that moment, when
I stood there looking at the sign
on his door, it had not occurred to
me that I might have given him
the infection. But the truth is I
may have. One of us certainly
did.”i
For those of us in preclerkship, it may be difficult to
appreciate the gravity of the
struggle taking place in hospitals
around the world to stem the
epidemic of antibiotic resistant
bugs.
With
Sir
Alexander
Fleming’s discovery of penicillin
in 1928, and the wave of drugs
that followed, doctors were in a
position, at least for several
decades, to win the war on
bacteria. But at the outset of the
new millennium, superbugs such
as
methicillin-resistant
Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)
and
vancomycin-resistant
enterococci (VRE) are launching
an assault on patients. And an
unlikely ally, the health care
worker, is helping them do it.
The issue of antibiotic
resistant bacteria is particularly
meaningful for me because my
late grandfather, Jean Bercovici,
who himself was a physician for
forty years, was infected with
MRSA in 2001 while being
treated at a hospital in the GTA.
But before I get to that, I will
provide a brief background.
Staphylococcus
aureus
and
enterococci are part of the normal
bacterial flora in humans, being
found most commonly in the nose
and gut, respectively. As a result
of widespread use of methicillin
and vancomycin, a small number
of bacterial clones have acquired
genes
conferring
resistance
against these antibiotics. As these
strains of bacteria, MRSA and
VRE, do not respond to the
standard therapy, they have
flourished
in
the
hospital
environment, spreading through
wards at an extraordinary rate.
How widespread are these
infections? In 1992, there were
fewer than 500 cases of MRSA
and no cases of VRE reported in
Ontario. Between 1999 and 2002,
roughly 33,000 patients were
identified as either colonized or
infected with MRSA. Nearly
2,000 patients tested positive for
VRE
(Department
of
Microbiology,
Mount
Sinai
Hospital).
The annual cost of
antibiotic resistance to the
Canadian health care system is
believed to be as much as $200
million. ii Sadly, the vast majority
of new cases of MRSA and VRE
can be attributed to health care
workers who have not properly
gowned, or worse, have not
bothered to wash their hands
between patients.
In truth, I find it difficult
to be passionate about statistics.
My attitude has been coloured far
more by my experience with my
grandfather, just one of those
33,000 patients to test positive for
MRSA. Like most people who
contract MRSA, he was merely
colonized. The bacteria did not
infect him nor did it directly
impair his health, it simply
appeared in a routine swab of his
3
tracheostomy tube. Someone had
not washed his or her hands.
As a result, my
grandfather spent many of what
were to be the last months of his
life lying alone in a room isolated
from the world. The perpetual
solitude had a terribly negative
influence on him, and all of this in
the hopes that his quarantine
would protect other patients from
suffering his fate. In retrospect, it
makes it all the more
heartbreaking that my family
would frequently see members of
the health care team going in and
out of his room without a gown or
without washing their hands
properly, each time putting
another patient at risk.
The life of a medical
student is demanding and fast
paced, but proper hygiene can be
the most important thing you ever
do for your patients. Even before
trying to heal, a doctor’s first
responsibility is to do no harm.
Take the extra fifteen seconds to
wash your hands. I know I will.
Mark Sinyor gives special thanks to Dr.
Mary Vearncombe, medical director of
infection prevention and control at
Sunnybrook and Women's College
Health Sciences Centre, for her advice
and input.
i Atul Gawande, General and Endocrine
Surgeon, Brigham and Women's
Hospital. New England Journal of
Medicine 349; 25:2383-2386, Dec 18,
2003.
ii Globe and Mail [Toronto]. 2001 May
30; Sect A:19).
From a Patient’s Point of View
The Whispering Disease
By Fatima Uddin
“I’m a very healthy
woman,” begins Francesca, her
vibrant eyes sparkling with life. “At
the time I was 54. I had never been
to a hospital except to deliver two
sons. I was working hard, living
well, and really looking after
myself.”
Then, in late May of 2000,
Francesca began to feel fatigued
and bloated. A vague discomfort
radiated below her navel. Alarmed
by these symptoms, she went to her
family
physician.
Without
conducting a full history, he
decided that she had Irritable
Bowel Syndrome (IBS).
On a second visit, the
family physician revealed that there
was blood in her urine. Despite
Francesca’s concerns, he insisted
that she was suffering from IBS
and
referred
her
to
a
gastroenterologist.
“He was very glad to be rid
of me.” Francesca shakes her head
in disappointment. “When I went
back for a third visit, he greeted me
with a terse ‘What are you doing
here?’ He seemed disappointed that
I had come back to bother him.”
By this time, Francesca was
suffering
from
diarrhea,
constipation, and pelvic pain. “I
really was not feeling well and I
broke down weeping in my GP’s
office. He didn’t even say to me
‘What is bothering you?’ He didn’t
pursue it at all!”
On a fourth and final visit,
Francesca’s physician performed a
pelvic exam. “I was screaming!
The pain was excruciating,” she
recalls with tears in her eyes. “He
said not a word. He didn’t explain
what he was doing, or why. I’ll
never forget it as long as I live!”
After the exam, without any
discussion,
he
ordered
an
ultrasound and arranged for her to
meet with a gynecologist.
Francesca also started to
see the gastroenterologist. “She
was very kind. She wanted me to
be healthy, but she wasn’t really
connecting
the
dots.”
The
gastroenterologist obtained her
ultrasound
results,
which
unfortunately revealed an abnormal
right ovary. “What does this
mean?” Francesca asked. All she
received in response was “I don’t
know.” The physician persisted in
her belief that Francesca had IBS
and arranged for her to have a
barium follow-through.
Francesca finally met with
the gynecologist in August. For the
first time, a physician conducted a
full, in-depth interview. He also
performed a pelvic exam, but the
experience
was
completely
different. “He explained everything
to me. He paid a lot of attention to
me. Most of all, he didn’t jump to
the easiest conclusion, which was
IBS.”
The
following
day,
Francesca went to have her barium
follow-through. As she walked into
the hospital, she saw her
gynecologist. “I waved, and he
waved back” Francesca remembers.
“I was petrified to ingest anything
at this point, but they made me
swallow a thing of shaving cream
4
consistency. The technician said it
would cause me to be constipated,
but I was already constipated. My
gynecologist waved to me, and he
knew that I was having the
procedure done. He suspected
ovarian cancer but he let me go
through the barium follow-through
anyway. They put me through this
sadistic torture anyway. It was bad
enough what I was going through,
but there were horrific acts
imposed on me without concern,
without empathy, without listening,
without explaining to me what my
risks were, or where they were
going with my treatment”.
The next time she visited
her gynecologist, he had the results
of a second ultrasound. “I have
some very bad news,” he said. “I’m
very sorry. You have ovarian
cancer. I didn’t want to tell you
until I had all the pieces together.”
“My physicians knew that I
had abdominal discomfort and
pelvic pain,” she tells me, pointing
to a list of symptoms on an ovarian
cancer fact card. “They knew I felt
bloated and fatigued. They knew of
my frequent urination, loss of
appetite, and change in bowel
habits. The tests they ordered
revealed an abnormal right ovary
and blood in my urine. I had every
classic symptom of ovarian cancer,
yet they failed to recognize it. I was
exactly at the mean age at which a
woman gets ovarian cancer. The
mean age is 54, and I was exactly
that!”
“They call it the whispering
disease,” Francesca laughs “but I
was shouting all the way.”
From a Patient’s Point of View
Last year was supposed to
be the best year of my life. I had
just graduated from U of T and I
was getting married. I was
looking forward to starting a new
chapter in my life. What I didn’t
know was that the year would be
full of challenges.
It all started during my
final exams in April 2003. I woke
up one day with double vision. I
visited Health Services and the
doctor referred me to see a
neurologist
instead
of
an
ophthalmologist, which I found to
be a bit strange.
A few days later, my
double vision disappeared as
mysteriously as it had appeared. I
didn’t want to defer writing my
exams, so I skipped the
neurologist appointment. I passed
my exams and graduated with
honours.
My next attack was on my
wedding day in the summer. I had
numbness and tingling in my foot.
I walked down the aisle with
almost a limp and I had to lean on
my father. A friend of mine who
was also a medical student asked
what had happened. After I
explained, she told me to see the
neurologist.
My foot problem was gone
during my honeymoon and so I
pushed it to the back of my mind.
I was so happy starting a new life
with my husband. As the summer
ended however, new problems
began.
One day in September, I
woke up feeling dizzy and I
couldn’t walk straight. I could no
longer ignore my health problems
so I phoned my friend. I showed
her that I couldn’t walk and told
I have Multiple Sclerosis
By Anonymous
her that I didn’t follow up with
my leg problem since my
wedding. She began to ask me
questions
about
tingling,
numbness, painful sensations,
slurred speech, blurred or double
vision, bladder problems, and
fatigue. When I told her about my
double vision, she was even more
worried.
My friend knew what was
wrong with me, but she had such
a hard time telling me. She kept
saying that she was only a second
year medical student and didn’t
know enough to diagnose me, but
she insisted that I see the
neurologist. I finally pinned her
down and insisted that she tell
me. She then looked at me with
tear-brimmed eyes and told me
that I probably had MS. That
moment will always be in my
memory.
I didn’t know much about
MS, but I knew it was a horrible,
chronic disease that crippled
people. After the initial shock, my
friend tried to explain the disease
to me. She showed me some
websites. She also warned me
about telling my husband in case
he might leave me. I was really
mad at her for suggesting such a
thing, but then I began to worry.
We had been married for less than
two months and he was only 24.
He could easily find someone else
who wasn’t defective like me.
I spent the afternoon
agonizing over how to tell my
husband. When he came home, I
told him quite bluntly that I had
MS. He was shocked at first, but
6
then he was very supportive. We
cried together all night.
My husband and I went to
see a GP the next day. The doctor
also thought I had MS, but said
that I had to undergo some
diagnostic tests. He referred me to
a neurologist the next week. After
all the tests had been performed,
the neurologist confirmed that I
had MS. I was prepared for the
diagnosis and up for the
challenge.
The neurologist said that
there was no cure for MS, but there
were ways to control it. There was
a drug that had to be given daily by
needle. I didn’t mind it too much,
but it was expensive. My husband’s
work did not offer a drug plan. I
was no longer covered by my
parents’ drug plan, nor was I
covered by my old student drug
plan. My parents were quite
supportive with paying for my
medications, but I couldn’t depend
on them forever. After a long
discussion with my husband, I
decided to go back to graduate
school. Some U of T graduate
programs
offered
reasonable
stipends and my drugs would be
covered by the SAC drug plan. I
contacted my old thesis project
supervisor and he agreed to take me
on as a Masters student.
My MS is now well
controlled and I haven’t had an
attack since. The past year has
brought many challenges, but it has
made me stronger. It has
strengthened my marriage and
made me appreciate my health –
something which I had never done
before.
INTERVIEW WITH A FACULTY MEMBER
Dr. Monica Branigan: Ethics in Action
By Jessica Ahn
As
an
undergraduate
student, I knew little about Dr.
Branigan prior to interviewing
her. But I was told that she
seemed like an interesting person,
so I set up a meeting. Little did I
know that I was about to
encounter someone who would
provide me with a whole new
perspective on what medicine is
all about.
I met Dr. Branigan in her
office in the Medical Sciences
Building, and she told me about
her work within the Faculty of
Medicine. As the Ethics theme
coordinator for the M.D. program
at U of T, she is responsible for
finding ways to create an
environment where students can
become the best doctors they can
be: doctors who will use both
their minds and their hearts in
their future practices.
Dr. Branigan attended
medical school at the University
of Ottawa, and trained in British
Columbia. She practiced in a
family medicine clinic for over 20
years, and is currently working in
community-based palliative care.
You may wonder, why
palliative care?
When Dr.
Branigan was an intern, her father
passed away very suddenly, and
she was left to deal with his
physician. The doctor was
emotionally detached. He failed
to provide Dr. Branigan and her
family with any emotional
comfort, merely offering details
of the procedures he had
performed. Her father passed
away fearful, without any family
members to comfort him, in a
moment that should have been
personal and loving.
In our culture, Dr.
Branigan notes, we place so much
emphasis on perfection and
excellency that we often overlook
the fact that doctors are human. It
is important to recognize that
doctors should be people who can
show compassion, people who
can help patients and their
families during the most painful
and overwhelming times of their
lives.
Dr. Branigan and her
family were deeply affected by
this experience. When she worked
in a clinic as a family physician,
she often felt too restricted in the
amount of time she could spend
with her patients. She wanted to
form real human relationships
with her patients, and 15 minutes
with a patient just didn’t allow for
that to happen.
Ultimately, these are the
qualities that patients want in
their physicians, and Dr. Branigan
has tried to incorporate many of
these ideas into The Healer’s Art,
an ethics-related elective for
medical students.
Having gathered a great
deal of experience from her 20
years in family medicine, she felt
prepared to dive into palliative
care. I, for one, am truly glad that
patients and the community have
someone like Dr. Branigan to
look to in times of great need.
7
Dr. Branigan leads a very
balanced life. She tries to make
time for yoga, and just recently
went on a trip to participate in a
yoga instructor course. She is
married to a physician, and they
have two children. She had been
skeptical at first about marrying
another physician, but at the end
of the day, Dr. Branigan now
finds it wonderful to go home to
someone who understands her
work and her motivations.
She is an avid reader who
remembers devouring the works
of the Brontë sisters in high
school, staying up late into the
night on the weekend to read and
coming out of her room on
Sunday just exhausted. Even
nowadays, she tries to fit a lot of
reading into her busy schedule.
She says it’s great to always have
something
uplifting
and
inspirational to read.
My interview with Dr.
Branigan made me appreciate her
important role in shaping medical
students’ education, and in
emphasizing the aspects of
medicine
that
go
beyond
prescriptions and diagnoses. Her
efforts to form real relationships
with her patients make her not
only an outstanding physician, but
an inspiring role model.
Once in a while, you meet
a person who makes you stop,
take a look around, and really
think about yourself and your
community. For me, Dr. Branigan
is one of those people.
INTERVIEW WITH A FACULTY MEMBER
Dr. Ian Taylor: Beyond the Myth
Integral to every new
medical student’s orientation
week is the inevitable warning
about Dr. Ian Taylor. Before the
first anatomy lecture is even
held, every first-year knows not
to come late to Dr. Taylor’s
classes without a very good
excuse.
Dr. Taylor, director of
the pre-clerkship phase of the
M.D. program and of the
Structure & Function unit that
spans the first five months of
medical school, doesn’t seem to
mind his notoriety. “It’s
probably a good thing that I’m
not starting from zero every
year,” he comments. “Last year,
I actually had a complaint from
a former student, now a
physician in the city, who said I
was slacking up, getting soft in
my old age. I’m mindful as well
of the reputation that I have to
maintain.
“I do think it’s important
to be respectful, students of their
profs and profs of their students.
It’s very difficult to concentrate
when people are walking in and
out,” he continues. “I also see it
as important down the road.
You’re going to expect patients
to
arrive
on
time
to
appointments, and equally,
patients will have a reasonable
expectation that you should
arrive on time.”
In his 31st year in the
Faculty of Medicine, Dr. Ian
Taylor is a familiar face to
several generations of medical
students.
“I’ve
seen
the
curriculum change, I’ve seen the
students
change.
Many
By Layla Dabby, OT8
professors have come and gone,
and I’m still here. I’ve greatly
enjoyed U of T; it’s been very
good to me.”
Dr. Taylor was born and
raised in Manchester, England,
and received his M.D. from the
University of Manchester. His
devotion to the Manchester
United football club well
precedes the era (or even the
birth) of David Beckham: it was
originally a matter of avoiding
the wrath of schoolyard bullies
fiercely loyal to Man U.
“I left in 1972. I went to
Edmonton initially for two years
before coming to U of T.
“I originally trained as a
neurosurgeon in England. I met
my wife there, who was a head
nurse. Given the relative status
of senior sisters and lowly
doctors, she was kind enough to
agree to marry me. Senior sisters
are very senior. If they said
‘jump,’ then junior doctors said
‘How high? Yes, ma’am!’ So it
was very good of her to marry
me. We’ve been married thirty
years.”
As the director of
Structure & Function, Dr.
Taylor is responsible for a tenweek block of gross anatomy.
“I hated anatomy when I
was a student,” he admits. “I
disliked it intensely, and finding
myself teaching it was a very
big surprise. When I did have
the opportunity to teach
anatomy, I decided that I was
going to try to make it as
interesting as I possibly could.
“We all spent thousands
of hours learning minutiae, as
7
well as the big stuff, and never
had a sense of what was
important and why. When I
originally took over the anatomy
course
in
1985,
and
subsequently brought in the new
curriculum, I was determined to
do it very differently from the
way it was done even in
Toronto.
“Almost everyone in the
class wants to be a clinician, so
the first thing is to take an
enormous amount of facts and
prune it down to the facts that
are actually useful. A week or
two into the class, you can
actually begin to make tentative
diagnoses, although there are
often other possibilities that you
don’t even know about yet; you
can see how investigations can
demonstrate anatomy, both
normal and disordered. Anatomy
is a discipline which opens up
broader vistas. You can practice
anatomy on your significant
other, your mum, your offspring,
somebody else’s offspring.”
Dr. Taylor doesn’t foresee any
major future changes to Structure
& Function. “In anatomy, of
course, there are no new muscles.
But there are different ways of
looking at those muscles.” Of the
M.D. program in general, he
thinks that “there needs to be a
pushing of the pendulum back to
primary care, particularly in the
pre-clerkship. Most doctors are
currently practicing in family
medicine.”
Is retirement anywhere on
the horizon? “Mike Wiley says
that I’m good until I’m eighty. I
don’t think my wife will tolerate
my teaching for that long...”
ARTS & Literature
Arrival
By Trevor Balena
I am sick. Perhaps dying.
My streets are littered with the dead. Friends. Family. Strangers. My houses are dark, decaying into
ruins, with only the dim light of failing fires inside hinting at those who yet survive. My churches, though far
quieter than before, ring with the voices of those who see the face of the apocalypse in their dreams, and in each
other. And, on the horizon, the specter of war looms ever larger; why deal but one cruel blow, the Fates must
think, when more will suffice?
Once, I was the jewel of my country; home of the Royal Residence; outlet for the dreams of Edward the
Confessor and Harold, his successor. Once, I was the finest city in all of Britain.
But now I am sick, perhaps dying.
I am London. And the Black Death has arrived to claim me.
by Daniel Saul, OT7 - charcoal and pencil
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Shouts and Murmurs
by Goldie Kurtz, OT8
Want to impress your next date? Is Grant’s the only museum you have visited this year? Then take advantage
of Toronto’s cultural scene! Here are some current and upcoming events to whet your artistic appetite…and
maybe wow a prospective amour!
Oh Picasso! The U of T Art Centre in University College is hosting a collection of Pablo Picasso’s ceramic
sculptures, in conjunction with the Gardiner Museum of Ceramic Art. Over 80 pieces are featured, many from
the Picasso family’s private collection. Several works have been borrowed from the Louvre in Paris and the
Museu de Ceramica in Barcelona. This exhibit is on campus (U.C.). Until January 23rd: Tues-Sun. 10-6 pm;
Fri 10-9 pm. $12 for students.
Royal Ontario Museum:
Come See the (Fascinating) Mess – Architecture and construction to create the “Renaissance ROM” - take a
free tour of the development starting January 12th.
"Pearls: A Natural History" - Brilliant deep-sea gems from all over the world. Pearls owned by Marilyn
Monroe, Marie Antoinette, and Audrey Hepburn are on display. Until Jan 9th. Tickets: $12 for students.
Do you have a passion for fashion? Want to learn more about Asian art? "Touched by Indigo" is coming to the
ROM in January. Witness the beauty of embroidery and weaving, and discover how traditional creations have
given rise to modern style. Until April 10th. Tickets: $12 for students.
Art Gallery of Ontario:
"Modigliani: Beyond the Myth" - Amadeo Modigliani, born in Italy in 1884, helped usher in the modern art era.
He broke the conventions of portraiture and created his own unique style for depicting others. Until January
23rd. Tickets: $15 for students.
The A.G.O. continues the theme of the Modigliani show with complimentary exhibits of portraiture including:
"Stargazing: Portraits of 19th and 20th Century Celebrities, Eye of the Beholder" (both until Jan. 9), and
"Reading Faces" (until Jan 31.) If you prefer sculpture, don’t miss their permanent Henry Moore collection –
the largest collection of his work in the world!
Music and Theatre
"Da Kink in My Hair": Celebrate the stories of six West Indian women who meet in a hair salon and share the
tales of their lives. Princess of Wales Theatre, 300 King St. W. Jan 11- Feb 27.
Yanni (yes, Yanni - unplugged! back with a vengeance, spinning his signature post-bohemian-alt-soft-classicalrock.) At the ACC. Date: February 2nd. Tickets: starting at $55.50.
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Interdisciplinary Page
BMC…More than just Textbook Illustrators
By Kari Francis, BMC
Hi, my name is Kari
Francis, and I am one of 9 BMC
graduate students. I was a part of
the OT8 first year medical course,
Structure
and
Function.
Throughout the course, I had the
chance to meet and talk with a
bunch of wonderful med students,
and from this interaction one
thing became clear—no one had
any idea what BMC stood for,
why we had class with them, or
how our program is incorporated
into the medical profession. So,
let me take this opportunity to
clear up what BMC stands for,
what we do, how we are
integrated into the medical field,
and why our expertise is so
critically needed. Keep reading
and I hope you come to fancy the
wonderful world of Biomedical
Communications (BMC) as much
as I do!
BMC
is
the
only
accredited program for medical
illustration in Canada, and one of
only five in North America! BMC
is a professional graduate
program
that
prepares
an
interdisciplinary group of 8-10
artists each year to become
critical thinkers, problem-solvers
and professional communicators.
The program combines design
and communication theory with
scientific knowledge to produce
visual
material
for
health
promotion, medical education,
and the process of scientific
discovery.
The one comment I get a lot
when trying to explain the BMC
program is “oh, you’re the people
who draw the pretty pictures in
medical textbooks”. To which I
respond, “We sure do, but that’s
not all, have you seen CSI?” If
you have, think of the realistic
animations of a bullet ripping
through skin and lodging into the
vertebral column, or when the
heart is pumping inside its
pericardium and red blood cells
are whizzing through an artery.
Medical animation is being used
in new ways each year, and our
graduate program is one of the
leaders in this field.
Although CSI is a good
example of the type of
entertainment animation that a
BMC graduate can do, the
majority of the work done is to
educate. The goal of a BMC
graduate is to stimulate the
audience visually and to make
difficult concepts easier to
understand for everyone. For
example, a set of parents who
have a child with cystic fibrosis.
They try to read all available
information on CF, but are
severely limited by endless, mindboggling medical terminology.
As a result, they become
frustrated and mad that they are
unable to fully understand the
condition that is afflicting their
child. However, a BMC student
working with CF specialists are
able to replace the obstacles, such
as difficult terminology and
complicated ideas, with a flowing,
and
conceptually
accurate
animation or interactive website.
BMC graduates are professionals
at bridging the gap between what
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doctors know and what people
want and need to learn. As you
can imagine, the necessity of this
type of work is boundless as it is
critical for medical education and
communication.
In addition to the 3D
animation (visualization design),
BMC also offers specialization in
new media design. Graduates
from this stream create and
evaluate interactive, computerbased multimedia for teaching
and learning. The outstanding
work done by BMC graduates is
all that is needed to prove that this
program is one of the leaders in
the field of medical illustrations.
To see examples of students’
work and to learn more about the
program, including its incredible
professors such as Dr. Linda
Wilson-Pauwels and Margot
Mackay,
please
go
to
http://brodel.med.utoronto.ca/bmc
/.
I hope you enjoyed this
quick walk through the BMC
program, and I hope you now all
have a better understanding of
what BMC graduates do. For
more information feel free to
contact
me
at
kari.francis@utoronto.ca.
I
would love to hear from anyone
interested in the program, or in
the work of BMC graduates!
The next edition of The
Pulse will include drawings from
students in our department…
Sorry, I could not include pictures
in this edition because I ran out of
space! So stay tuned!!
Clubs/Organizations
Women In Medicine
By: Karen Hershenfield, Women in Medicine Co-chair 2004-2005
Left to right: Sara Cohen-Gelfand, Mickey Zeller and Karen Hershenfield (WIM co-chairs),
Dr. Anna Day and Dr. Edward Shorter at the “History of Medicine” wine and cheese held earlier this year.
The Women in Medicine
(WIM) group is an organization
for medical students at U of T that
provides an opportunity to meet
female role models in medicine in
an
informal
setting.
By
participating in WIM events,
students are also given a chance
to foster leadership skills and to
learn about the opportunities
available within medicine. Lastly,
this group educates the student
body about challenges faced by
female physicians in the past.
WIM was founded by
members of the OT5 class and is
currently in its third year of
existence, co-chaired by Sara
Cohen-Gelfand, Mickey Zeller
and Karen Hershenfield. Our
events this year started out with a
IT’S A BOY !!!
“meet and greet” in October for
medical students and female
faculty and staff. It was great to
see such a large turnout of
interested students! Our second
event, held on November 10th,
was a “History of Women in
Medicine” wine and cheese
featuring talks by Dr. Edward
Shorter, history of medicine
professor at U of T and Dr. Anna
Day,
a
respirologist
at
Sunnybrook
and
Women’s
College. It was both a very
informative
and
enjoyable
evening!!
In expanding WIM this year,
we have made connections with
Canada’s national group, the
Federation of Medical Women of
Canada (FMWC). We attended
a
great
FMWC leadership
conference for students in the
summer and have been amazed at
the support available for female
physicians, residents, and students
at the national level.
WIM is looking forward
to its big event of the year: the
spring gala!! Last year’s event
was absolutely superb and we
hope to set up an even more
enjoyable event this year, with
dynamic speakers and interesting
physicians to speak with our
students. We must thank the
MAA and MedSoc for helping to
make all of our events possible.
See you all at the spring gala!
If you have questions, please
email womeninmeds@yahoo.ca.
MAZEL TOV – Jewish for congratulations. Ari (0T7) and
Stephanie Greenwald are thrilled to announce the birth of their
son, Gabriel, who was born 8lb 2oz at 4:37 am on November 2,
2004 at the wonderful Women’s College Hospital. Gabriel’s
arrival has brought tremendous joy to his entire family (including
aunt Ilana, 0T6), and especially to his big sister, Adira. Ari and
Stephanie wish to thank the entire student body and faculty for all
of their tremendous support and best wishes. Special thanks goes
to Dr. Chapman who has been especially helpful throughout this
busy and exciting time.
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Clubs/Organizations
New Student Group Addresses Adolescent Body Image Issues
By David Wasserstein, OT7
This year (2004/5) is the
inaugural year of a new medical
student community health group –
Healthy Body Image. The goal of
our group is to promote health in
adolescents through education
and discussion on issues of body
image. We hope to create an
open, comfortable environment to
allow high school students to
discuss how body image can
affect a person’s health.
Many medical problems in
young people, including eating
disorders and body dysmorphic
disorders, are tied into this image.
On a deeper level, factors such as
low self esteem, the media and
societal and peer pressures may
influence an impressionable
young person. Adolescents need
to be aware that activities that
have become commonplace,
such as compulsive
exercising, occasional starving to
lose weight and taking over-thecounter supplements (e.g., stool
softeners or performance
enhancers), have a health risk of
their own and may lead to the
development of more serious
conditions.
Our group has chosen to
use established (in peer-reviewed
journals – for you DOCH II
addicts) educational materials
developed by Sheena’s Place and
the Hospital for Sick Children.
This approach attempts to address
underlying risks for developing
body image disorders, including
low self esteem and peer pressure,
as opposed to direct education.
If you decide to help out
with our group – and we hope you
do – our plan is to visit 3 local
high schools during the second
semester. We will be recruiting
and training volunteers in
January.
Depending on the
number of volunteers and/or your
interest, volunteering should
require a commitment of training
plus one session only. If
interested, please contact David
Wasserstein or Alex Palombo at
david.wasserstein@utoronto.ca or
a.palombo@utoronto.ca.
We feel it is important for
young people to discuss these
topics in an open environment.
They need to be made aware of
pressures, reflect on their own
values, know where they can
obtain guidance and information,
and learn about the risks of
activities of which they may be
unaware.
With some hard work and
your participation – the Healthy
Body Image group hopes to
deliver this messa
The Pulse 2004/05 Editorial Staff
Co-Editors In Chief
Amelia Ciofani, OT7 & Amanda Hu, OT6
News/Editorials
Dharini Mahendira, OT6 & Alessandra Palombo, OT7
From a Patient's Point of View
Louie Chan, OT7 & Brian Kim, OT7
Interview With a Faculty Member
Layla Dabby, OT8 & Shazeen Suleman
Clubs/Organizations /Announcements
Michelle Levy, OT7 & Laura Saunders, OT7
Arts & Lit
Joanna Mansfield OT6 & Daniel Saul, OT7
Interdisciplinary Page
Kari Francis, BMC
Faculty Advisors
Dr. Anne Agur, Dr. William Chapman & Dr. Kelly O’Brien
Contact us at amelia.ciofani@utoronto.ca
Check out our website at http://individual.utoronto.ca/amandahu/
The Pulse is sponsored by the Medical Alumni Association and the Medical Society.
Happy New Year from The Pulse!
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